Field of the Invention
Priorities are claimed on Japanese Patent Application No. 2014-195343, filed Sep. 25, 2014, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
Embodiments of the present invention relate to energy management systems, display control apparatuses, display methods, and computer-readable storage media.
Related Art
In recent years, efficient use of limited resources is highly demanded and energy saving actions are being actively promoted. To promote the energy saving, visualization of energy performance such as energy consumption, energy efficiency, etc., in equipment or facilities is important. For example, to find a deviation from a target value or to check the effect of energy saving actions, changes in the energy efficiency and the energy consumption of the equipment or facilities, the effect of the energy saving actions, etc., are displayed on an energy management screen.
For example, the energy management screen may simultaneously display, on a time axis, specific energy consumption (energy consumption/production), which is one of the indicators of the energy efficiency; energy consumption; and production. Many of energy management software products that have functions which are equivalent thereto may check a time-series variation in the energy efficiency to perform target management and serve as a trigger which investigates a cause thereof at the time of the abnormality. Moreover, the energy management screen may have an accumulated value for one month plotted with points with the energy consumption on the vertical axis and relevant variables (production) on the horizontal axis. This management screen is widely used as what visually shows the energy efficiency (the relationship between the energy consumption and the relevant variables) and may display fixed energy (a base load) consumed even when the production is zero. Moreover, in the energy management screen, an estimated value and a measured value of the energy consumption are displayed such that they can be compared. For example, the estimated value is calculated from a mathematical expression which is modelled with the characteristic of the energy efficiency of a reference period. This management screen is widely used for the purpose of visualizing the effect of a policy for improving the energy efficiency. An example of the above-described energy management screen is described in ISO/DIS50006, for example.
Moreover, the energy management screen may simultaneously display an energy-saving management indicator (an energy efficiency indicator) as a part of a management information such as a safety information, a revenue and expenditure information, an inventory information, etc. In addition, the energy management screen may also simultaneously display a trend chart of the energy consumption and the conditions of use of the equipment (for example, “Next-generation distribution-type EMS Energy management system InfoEnergy (registered trademark) Yokogawa Electric Corporation” https://www.yokogawa.co.jp/pdf/provide/J/G W/Bulletin/0000024413/0/BU34P03A21-01.pdf, p. 9, “Getting Wholeview by Multiwindow”) and information on the energy efficiency, etc., may also be displayed simultaneously in the overall arrangement diagram of the plant.
Now, the characteristics of the energy performance such as the energy consumption, the energy efficiency, etc., greatly differs depending on the operating status (during deactivation of the equipment, during activation of the equipment, during manufacturing of a product A, during manufacturing of a product B, etc.) that changes in time series in the equipment or facilities.
However, with the related-art energy management screen, it is difficult to focus on the relation of the operating status and the energy performance and compare the energy performance of the operating status which is equivalent in time series.